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Sparta man killed in house fire identified through dental records

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A 67-year-old man was killed in a house fire early Saturday morning - but he was so badly burned it took until today, and the use of dental records, to identify him, Sparta police say.
(Sparta Police Department)

SPARTA — The man who died in a house fire Saturday was so badly burned that authorities had to use dental records to identify him, authorities said.

The remains of Robert A. Womack, 67, were identified this morning by the Morris County Medical Examiner, said Sgt. John-Paul Beebe.

Womack was killed early Saturday morning in his Heighwood Trail home, where he lived alone, Beebe said.

The local fire department was alerted at 5:30 a.m., and by the time firefighters arrived, the house was already engulfed in flames, authorities said.

Womack, who worked as a medical technologist for Samaritan Hospital in Suffern, N.Y., was never married, had no children, and only a single living relative, police said. That relative, an aunt who lives out of state, was notified of the incident Sunday, Beebe said.

An investigation of the cause and origin of the fire is still underway, and includes Sparta police detectives, the Sussex County Prosecutor’s Office, and Sussex County Fire Marshal, and the New Jersey State Police.

A Sparta firefighter was injured in the midst of fighting the fire, officials added. Lt. Anthony Riehl, 37, sustained second-degree burns on his shoulder and back while searching the home for victims. Riehl has since been released from the hospital – and is recovering, Beebe said.